estate; nor shall I speak of the danger to life and honor to which I have exposed myself in getting the fleet together, because I would have you know that I do not seek gain from it so much as honor, for good men hold honor dearer than riches."
Casca thought that Cortes did very well in bringing up things he didn't want to mention. The man was a natural politician. Cortes caught his breath and continued.
"We are engaging in a just and good war which will bring us fame. Almighty God, in whose name and faith it will be waged, will give us victory, and time will see the accomplishment that always follows upon whatever is done and guided by intelligence and good counsel. We must, therefore, employ a different way, a different reasoning, and a different skill from those of Cordoba and Grijalba. I shall not pursue the matter further because of the pressure of time, which urges us onward. There we shall do as we shall see fit, and here I offer you great rewards, although they will be wrapped about with great hardships. Valor loves not idleness, and so therefore, if you will take hope for valor, or valor for hope, and if you do not abandon me, as I shall not abandon you, I shall make you in a very short time the richest of all men who have crossed the seas and of all the armies which have made war. You are few, I see, but such is your spirit that no effort or force of Indians will prevail against you, for we have seen by experience how God has favored the Spanish nation in these parts and how we have never lacked courage or strength and never shall. Go your way now, content and happy, and make the outcome equal to the beginning."
The assembly gave a great cheer, much encouraged by the speech, especially the part about making them rich men. There was a rush for the assembly to line up in three rows to sign the articles that would make them part of this great enterprise. Casca and Juan waited their turn, the scar-faced man thinking of the manner in which fate turns its endlessly spinning wheel of chance. If Grijalba and Cordoba had not made a chance landing on the shores of the unknown lands to the west of Cuba, Cortes would not at this time be signing on hands to go there.
Cortes waited until all had signed the articles and then stood on a table to get their attention once more. To all there, he gave the order that they were to sail as soon as a mass was said and the wind turned favorable. Men rushed to gather their gear and load equipment and horses. They would be ready when the time came.
It was February 18, 1519, when Cortes gave his pilots their orders and set a large lantern from his mast to serve as a guide for the others of his small fleet. The course was set for due west of Punta de San Anton, the last tip of Cuba, for Cape Catoche, the closest landfall at Yucatan, sixty leagues distant.
The conquistadors of Spain had set sail.
A storm blew up that night, and they were forced to change their course. Instead of Yucatan, they made first landfall on the island of Cozumel. Three ships of the fleet had managed to stay with Cortes's flagship, and of the rest, only one ship failed to find its way to Cozumel, though all of them were blown off course and had to pick their own paths and speed. The ship commanded by de Morala had lost its rudder in the storm, and this caused some delay before Cortes was able to press on.
Two more days' sail without sight of land and they reached Punta de las Mujeres, where they found several of the stray ships at anchor, waiting. Cortes ordered his pilots to set their course for the direction in which the winds and weather had most likely blown the remainder of his lost ships. He found them anchored in a fair harbor within sight of a native town. Ordering a patrol to investigate the village, Cortes hoped to find a friendly reception. But when they returned to the ships, it was with the word that all the natives had fled. When questioned further, they said that the town was well built of mortar and
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